Heartburn drugs Prilosec and Nexium, no effect on heart, but checking on hip fractures, says FDA

Prilosec and Nexium considered safe for heart, investigation continues about hip fracture side effect

Source: FDA/Forbes
Summary: Medical Discoveries
Date: Dec 10, 2007

MONDAY, Dec. 10 (HealthDay News) -- A U.S. government review of the popular heartburn drugs Prilosec and Nexium found no evidence of increased heart risks, health officials said Monday.

The announcement followed a three-month safety review after reports of possible heart risks emerged from two preliminary studies. But detailed data from both studies, plus another 14 studies, showed no heightened risk associated with long-term use of the drugs, U. S. Food and Drug Administration officials said.

Complete data showed that patients taking Prilosec had a lower risk of heart problems than patients taking a placebo. And findings from the ongoing Nexium trial found no difference in heart problems between patients taking the drug and those undergoing surgery for GERD, the FDA statement said.

However, Seligman did say that the FDA continues to investigate whether the drugs increase the risk of hip fracture. A report in the Dec. 27, 2006, issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association found that people 50 and older who took Prilosec or Nexium had a 44 percent higher risk of hip fracture than people not taking these drugs.